Eddie Howe, the manager of Newcastle, has received praise for elevating Joelinton’s game, but Steve Bruce should also receive some of the credit.
According to former Magpies forward Kieron Dyer, Bruce began using the Brazilian before Eddie Howe entered the lineup in a deeper role.
Dyer stated to talkSPORT:
“Newcastle fans won’t like me for saying it, but to be fair to Bruce, he did start playing Joelinton as a midfielder.
“But obviously, Eddie has taken his game to another level just like he has with [Miguel] Almiron.”
Despite this, Joelinton was never truly used in midfield by Bruce in the 89 games the Brazilian played for the former Toon manager.
The 26-year-old was primarily utilized as a striker by Bruce, who also occasionally deployed him on the left.
Joelinton was once a comic figure, but now that the Magpies are vying for a spot in the top four, he is adored and one of their most beloved players.
With players like Almiron, Sven Botman, and Bruno Guimaraes all starring, the club has had a fantastic season thus far. They are currently third in the Premier League and have only lost once.
Teams no longer look forward to visiting St. James’ Park because Newcastle is undefeated there this year, and Dyer highlighted how intimidating Newcastle’s home field can be.
Joelinton scored in Tuesday night’s 2-0 Carabao Cup victory for Newcastle over Leicester, according to Dyer:
“It’s the best place to play when everything is going well and the fans have got a team to be proud of.
“It could be one of the worst places to play as well when they’re disgruntled. But yeah, you see in the tunnel before the game – Leicester were in for a game and they were beaten as soon as they came out.
“You could just tell that there was only going to be one winner and it was Newcastle.”
